Whether it will enable Daimler to catch Tesla with autonomous EQ electric cars ... only time will tell.

"Stuttgart – Bosch and Daimler are joining forces to advance the development of fully automated and driverless driving. The two companies have entered into a development agreement to bring fully automated (SAE Level 4) and driverless (SAE Level 5) driving to urban roads by the beginning of the next decade.

The objective is to develop software and algorithms for an autonomous driving system. The project combines the total vehicle expertise of the world's leading premium manufacturer with the system and hardware expertise of the world's biggest supplier. The ensuing synergies should ensure the earliest possible series introduction of the secure technology.

The car comes to the driver

By introducing fully automated and driverless driving to the urban environment, Bosch and Daimler aim to improve the flow of traffic in cities, enhance safety on the road and provide an important building block for the way traffic will work in the future.

The technology will, among other things, boost the attraction of car sharing. It will allow people to make the best possible use of their time in the vehicle and open up new mobility opportunities for people without a driver's licence, for example.

The prime objective of the project is to achieve the production-ready development of a driving system which will allow cars to drive fully autonomously in the city. The idea behind it is that the vehicle should come to the driver rather than the other way round. Within a specified area of town, customers will be able to order an automated shared car via their smartphone. The vehicle will then make its way autonomously to the user and the onward journey can commence."

Future mobility: Within a specified area of town, users will be able to use their smartphone to order a car sharing car or robot taxi. The vehicle will then make its way autonomously to the user and the onward journey can commence.